The Shinigami's Promise
by Backstagewriter
Summary: A promise made on the brink of death and destruction, but how far are they willing to go just to keep that promise? "In exchange for your soul, I will grant you one wish," The Shinigami said. "Then let me see my son one last time," WARNING: SPOILERS
1. Prologue: The Promise

Akizakura here, I'm redoing all the chapters in "The Shinigami's Promise". Plainly to put it, it sucks, well at least it needs editing. So if anyone is interested in being a beta for this story, please contact me. The requirements are that you are good at grammar and spelling (I'm horrible so do not murder) and that you're caught up with the latest Naruto Manga.

Note: Words that have are in bold are for readers that do not watch the Japanese version, there is a definition on the bottom.

**WARNING: IF YOU DO NOT LIKE SPOILERS AND HAVE NOT READ TO THE PART WHERE NARUTO'S FATHER IS REVEALED I SUGGEST YOU STOP RIGHT NOW. Hey, I warned you.**

_**DISCLAIMER**_**: I DO NOT OWN ANY CHARACTERS NOR THE SERIES ITSELF. NARUTO DOES NOT BELONG TO ME NOR AM I MAKING ANY MONEY OFF THIS (I wish though). THIS IS FOR ****FAN PURPOSES ONLY**** AND NOTHING ELSE.**

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The cursed crimson liquid stained the Earth as the sounds of deaths flooded the air around them. _Blood. Death. Destruction. _There were pleas of men and women; some begged for death, some for water, and others for their loved ones. Their last requests went unheard as the demon crushes more victims. Inside the Konoha Hospital a man with unruly sun-kissed hair held a newborn infant in his arms.

His name was Namikaze Minato, the **Yondaime** Hokage. The infant he held in his arms was not even a couple hours old and now, that very infant had to shoulder a very dangerous burden by himself.

"I'm sorry," Minato whispered to the infant. If only he could turn back the hands of time, he could make everything right again. His forlorn sapphire eyes gazed sadly at the hospital room where the baby was delivered from. Silently, he walked out of the busy hospital. The sky was blackened from the deaths and stained with the blood of both innocents and guilty.

He placed the baby down and bit his thumb, puncturing the skin as blood leaked out. Then he performed a Summoning Jutsu and a huge puff of smoke surrounded him.

"Minato eh?" a voice rumbled out.

"**Gamabunta**, this is my last battle I need you to hold off **Kyuubi **for a couple seconds," Minato stated as he picked out the infant once more.

"A fitting death for a shinobi," Gamabunta replied quietly before hopping towards the Yondaime Hokage's last battle. While Gamabunta distracted Kyuubi, Minato set to work. Seals flashed through his hands as he performed a forbidden technique, his last technique. _I'm sorry, maybe someday you'll understand._

"Namikaze Minato, what purpose have you summon me for?" a monster with red horns stated.

"To seal the Kyuubi inside this boy," Minato replied, as he gazed over his son once last time.

"But is he not your son?" The **Shinigami **inquired.

"He is,"

"Then why curse him?"

"I'm not cursing him, I'm entrusting the Kyuubi to him,"

"Very well foolish human, I shall grant you one wish before your death," Minato's head perked up to look at the Shinigami, "A reward for sacrificing your life for this village"

"Then let me see my son grow up," Minato's sapphire eyes glistened with renewed hope.

The Shinigami chuckled; "Humans are indeed greedy, very well then, I'll let you see your son during the period he grows the most" The Shinigami turned and reached out into Kyuubi soul. Kyuubi howled with rage and hatred as he tried to claw the Shinigami with no success. There was a bright flash of light and it was over.

It was all over, the Kyuubi was sealed, Minato's body was lifeless, and an infant cried soundly. That infant's name was Uzumaki Naruto, and so it begins, the promise that was made so very long ago.

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I love doing prologues they're so fun . Anyways for people who are not familiar with the Japanese version of Naruto here are the translations.

**JAPANESE DICTIONARY**

- Yondaime: The Fourth  
- Kyuubi (No Kitsune): Nine tails (demon fox)

- Gamabunta: The boss toad that the Yondaime Hokage used in his battle against Kyuubi. (Thanks for OnGuard for catching this mistake)

-Shinigami: Japanese death reapers. It's the one that the third (Sandaime Hokage) summoned during his fight with Orochimaru in order to seal his arms.


	2. Father

Hey guys, Akizakura here. Looking back on "The Shinigami's Promise" I realized that I need to give it a makeover. Why? Because it sucks, well at least it needs some editing. This was written almost a year ago and my writing skills have improved (hopefully). So this story will be put on hold until all editing is finished. I might update a chapter during my breaks and I'm looking for a new editor. :)

DISCLAIMER: Yeah I own Naruto and I'm also the Easter bunny.

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The sun-kissed blonde slammed himself gently against the tree's rough bark. A gentle breeze brushed past his tanned skin and ruffled his golden strands of hair. Tranquility had dominated this part of the forest and wasn't going to give it up without a-er peaceful protest?

Peace rarely lasted in Konoha. Now thinking back at least a good decade or so, some would chuckle at the memories of the pranks the blonde had pulled many years ago. That didn't mean he stopped pulling it now though unfortunately for some. Now, he was faster and harder to catch, it took a couple squads of ANBU to find him.

The squads didn't enjoy this mission as it was quite often, like now; after all it was like finding that stupid cat they all had to do when they were Gennin. Except this was a sly and mischievous fox instead of a stupid cat. When the squads can't find him, his old teammates were dispatched to find him (much to their annoyance).

"Naruto, Naruto," a feminine voice called out and the sun-kissed blonde tilted his head towards the direction which the voice had come from.

"Sakura-chan?" he muttered to himself

"Hurry up and come out **dobe**," a deeper masculine voice called out laced with irritation.

"Sasuke-**teme**" he cussed under his breath. It wasn't that he didn't like the Uchiha, he liked him, really. Well as much as a person could like his best friend, but sometimes he swears that Uchiha could be a real bastard.

"What are you guys doing here?" Naruto leaped off the branch he was resting on and landed on the ground with a soft thump.

"Naruto, Tsunade-sama wants to see you," a young woman with short bubblegum informed.

"Tsunade-**bacchan**?" Naruto raised a curious eyebrow, then the corners of his mouth curved, forming the foxy grin he was famous for, "Maybe she has an awesome A rank mission for me"

"Or maybe, she wants to see you because of that last prank you pulled," Sasuke reminded the cheerful blonde.

"Nah, she already murdered me for that," Naruto replied, "I'll go see what she wants, see you guys later"

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"Are you sure? " Tsunade warned, "There will be no going back"

"I know, but he has to know the truth," a male's voice stated wearily.

"He's going to throw a fit," that sentence lingered in the air before the male responded by a soft chuckle.

"From your description of what he's like, I would believe so,"

"He's got your looks but has his mother's personality," Tsunade sighed, "It's annoying me to no end"

"Kushina's personality huh?"

"Tsunade-bacchan, what do you want to see me for?" Uzumaki Naruto burst into the office.

"Naruto, perfect timing," Tsunade had her hands connection with the other with her elbows on the wooden desk, "Close the door, I have something important to tell you"

There was a small click as the door closed, "What is it Bacchan? Who's that?" Naruto gazed at the dark hooded figure.

"Naruto, this is your father,"

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OMAKE 1

"Tsunade-bacchan, what do you want to see me for?" Uzumaki Naruto burst into the office.

"Naruto, perfect timing," Tsunade had her hands connection with the other with her elbows on the wooden desk, "Close the door, I have something important to tell you"

There was a small click as the door closed, "What is it Bacchan? Who's that?" Naruto gazed at the dark hooded figure.

"Naruto, I .Am. Your," the dark hooded figure said, "Father!" _GASP! _Author inserts dramatic music in here.

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Akizakura: "Short yes, but at least you got an omake :). I know I said I will be uploading all the chapters again during break, but-" 

Sasuke: "She's just too damn lazy"

Akizakura: -glares- "That's part of it, but I'm pretty busy too you know?"

Naruto:"You're having a sleepover on Thursday,"

Akizakura: "Shut up, I'm working on it. I got quite a bit of work to finish since I neglected it, so updates will be slow."


	3. Nursery

I had chapter 3 almost done and my computer lost the file because I know I saved it. So I have redo it. Great.

**Disclaimer: The day I own Naruto is the day when Naruto hates ramen.**

**Note: **When the text is **BOLD **it's Kyuubi talking 33 –hugs Kyuubi plushie- and _italics _are thoughts.

Kyuubi: -sweatdrops-

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"_Naruto, perfect timing," Tsunade had her hands connection with the other with her elbows on the wooden desk, "Close the door, I have something important to tell you"_

_There was a small click as the door closed, "What is it Bacchan? Who's that?" Naruto gazed at the dark hooded figure._

"_Naruto, this is your father,"_

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A moment of pure silence settled itself in the office, as my world was shattered. Everything, the foundation of my life, the lies I had to build to protect myself. A crystal-clear shard hurls downwards, spinning in every direction. A fragment of my lies, of my barrier, _my parents didn't abandon me._ Another one follows it, _my parents are proud of me and watching me from a far._

Within a few moments, shards of my world scattered across the floor like dust in a forgotten building. Something that took so many years, so much time and patience to build, it was all shattered within a second. Words are powerful, with one line; you can destroy a person from the inside and watch them twist in unspeakable suffocating pain.

"Bacchan, is this a, sick joke or something?" I asked, disgusted. _I don't want to face the truth._

"Naruto, listen to me carefully," the moment Bacchan looked at me with that serious look, I knew she wasn't lying, "This man standing before you here, is your biological father" _I don't want it to hurt me anymore, so please, please._

"What?" I took a step back. _I beg of you, please don't._

This was all a very bad dream. My parents are dead, I am an orphan and nothing can change that fact. _Or am I such a monster that even my own parents abandoned me? _

"This isn't funny Bacchan" _Did my mother cried when she gave birth to me?_

"They died a long time ago," _Was my father ashamed of me?_ "What are yo-"_Why? Why? Why did you abandon me? _

"Naruto, your father had his own reasons for leaving you," Bacchan snapped angrily.

"You're lying! My parents they wouldn't, they wouldn't…" _abandon me_. I don't remember the feeling of wood pressing against my hands as I fled out of Bacchan's office, nor the hard pounding of my chest as my lungs gasps for fresh air. I ran past the training fields, deep into the lush green forest surrounding Konoha, and only then did I finally sink to my knees.

The raspy sounds of my breathing filled the air quickly as I lay in the spongy sweet-smelling grass. Seconds ticked by and quickly turned into minutes which were transformed into hours. I had spread my arms out as if I was making a snow angel and just lay there.

"**You're running away brat" **a deep and smooth rumbled from deep inside my head.

"I'm not running away," I denied.

"**Then why won't you accept him?"**

"…I…" It lingered in the air for a few moments before he answered.

"**He's the family you have always wished for, and now, he's before your eyes and yet you won't accept him" **

"Would you accept a father who you thought has been dead all these years and suddenly turn up, Kyuubi?" I whispered softly.

"…**..Your father…He's a honorable man"**

"What? What do you mean?" Only the sounds of birds chirping and cicadas answered me.

"Answer me Kyuubi!" then I mumbled a small string of curses and insults to the fox demon.

"Am I running away?" Only the gentle ruffle of the winds heard my words.

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It was huge, no scratch that, it was HUGE! No wait, it was gigantic! It was bigger than big. It was a freaking mansion for crying out loud! I stood at the rusted gates of the mansion with my "father" (who hasn't even made an effort to show his face) and stared dumbly at it. The mansion itself was a 3 story house with a western style design, unlike the Uchiha and Hyuuga compound, which both had eastern style designs.

"Wow…." It was enormous, it was, you know what, forget it. It was big, there happy? My "father" unlatched the rusty gate and pushed it inward as it let out a painful groan of complaint. He climbed the porch and slid a small silver key into the doorknob, and the door (like the gate) moaned and groaned as it was forced open. I followed him into the house with a curious look.

"What is this?"

"A house" _No shit Sherlock. _I resisted the sudden deep urge to roll my eyes.

"Why?"

"Because this is where you'll be staying, unless" then he shuffled uncomfortably, "you rather stay somewhere else" The wind had blew the hood of his cloak back a bit, revealing deep sapphire eyes. It was eyes of a man who had gone through pain and obstacles, it was the eyes of a man who had conquered them, and it was the eyes of a tired man.

"I'll stay with you for a while," then I added quickly, "Just to help you get settled in and stuff" His eyes which had seem dull earlier, quickly sprang to life and brighten.

"Thanks," _"Naruto, your father had his own reasons for leaving you," _For what reason? For what reason did he leave his newborn son to battle the villagers for?

He flicked on the lights and they flickered dimly for a few seconds before finally becoming stable and brightening a bit.

"Damn, I told Tsunade-san to fix these lights 5 times already," he mumbled as he stumbled his way through the front door. Then he turned to me and said, "There are rooms on the second and third floors, go choose the one you want. I'll be down here getting all this crap to work."

"You'll need that," he said as he tossed a flashlight into my hands.

"Right," I nodded then turned on the flashlight to navigate my way through the dark halls.

"**I wonder if there are ghosts here,"** a sudden amused voice piped up.

"G-G-G-G-G-G-Gho-Ghosts?!" I gulped nervously.

"**It seems like a rather old house doesn't it?"**

"There are no such things as ghosts, there are no such things as ghosts, there are no such things as ghosts," I muttered my usual spell to keep me focus.

"**Boo!" **I stifled a scream as I bolted for the staircase. Like a crazed man (maybe I am) as I nearly flew up the steps.

"**That was rather entertaining"**

"Damn…You…..Kyuubi….." I wheezed out, "Thanks to you….I think….I shortened my lifespan by 5 years…."

"**Fine then, I'll leave you all by yourself, in this dark and old house. And it's possibly haunted by ghosts, have fun"**

"No wait Kyuubi-sama! Please don't gooooooo," I begged.

"**Fine"** A sigh of relief washed over me, then slowly, I made way through the darken hallway with a spot of bright light leading the way.

"I better start picking a room," my voice was barely above a whisper as I stood before a wooden door. With palpitating hands, I tighten my fingers around the brass doorknob and twisted it all the way around before gently pushing it open. The light from my flashlight revealed a nicely-sized room with a couple simple furniture decorating the room.

"**Looks like a guest room,"**

"Y-Yeah…." A moment of silence hung between us as if it was remembering whoever lived here at one point.

"W-We sho-should check o-out the other r-rooms," I stuttered as I walked without waiting for a reply.

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"**Maid's room,"**

"Eh?"

"**This room is a maid's room," **Kyuubi replied as we both stared at the bleak room.

"**Bulter's room,"** Kyuubi commented again as I stopped in front of another room.

"You sure know a lot about rooms Kyu-chi"

"**I use to play a lot with th-KYU-CHI??!!!" **I winced at the volume in my head.

"Don't get so angry, Kyu-chi is a pretty cute nickname don't you think?"

"**I, THE KYUUBI NO KITSUNE, LORD OF ALL DEMONS IS NOT CUTE," **Kyu-chi howled angrily.

"Did you just insult yourself?" Kyu-chi let out a string of very colorful words then went silent.

"Kyu-chi? Hello? Are you there?"

Silence replied to my question.

"NOOOO I'M SORRY KYU-CH-I MEAN KYUUBI-SAMA PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE!!!!" A hand suddenly grabbed my shoulder.

Naruto's Father

"Where's the light switch?" I mumbled as I navigate my way in the dark, then I mimicked Tsunade-san's voice, "No problem, I have always taken care of the house so you'll be able to live there right away. Che, probably spent all that money paying her debts stupid old hag." With a heavy sigh I fumbled around my pocket for another flashlight.

"Why didn't I take another flashlight with me?" I moaned, "Naruto has my only flashlight with him, maybe I'll go upstairs and find him" After a small time to ponder, I climbed the wooden stairs up.

_Ah, there he is,_ I thought as I spotted him not too far from the staircase.

"NOOOO I'M SORRY KYU-CH-I MEAN KYUUBI-SAMA PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE!!!!" Naruto screamed.

_What is he doing?_ Without thinking I grabbed his shoulders and then he frozed, standing completely still before bolting shouting, "NOOOOOOOO PLEASE DON'T EAT ME!!!!!"

"Why would I eat my own son?" I stared at him for a couple seconds before realizing he still had the flashlight, "Wait, come back!!!" I ran after the little fearful bobbing light.

"Damn he's fast, but not fast enough," In an instant I caught up to him, _I worked forever to be this fast, as if I will let a brat beat me (even if he's my own son) muhahahahahahahahahahahahaha._

"Wait a minute Naruto-kun," I wheezed breathlessly. _Great, now I'm out of shape. I knew I should have exercise more often. _"I'm not going to eat you, I just need the flashlight."

His lips formed a small "O" as he handed the flashlight to me.

"So, have you picked a room yet?" He shook his head.

Uzumaki Naruto

"So have you picked a room yet?" He asked somewhat nervously, I shook my head in reply.

"I see…."

Then I turned around, facing a random door and then very gently placed my hand on the worn out brass doorknob. I tighten my grasp upon it and turned it. For a couple moments I squinted in the darkness with nothing but the dimming light of the flashlight illuminating the room. A silent gasp escaped from me, I didn't need Kyuubi to tell me what this room was.

"**Nursery,"**

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Aki:"Sorry for taking forever to update but I'm still following the original version of the story. I want to thank all my readers who took time to favorite, alert, read, and/or review it. To me, you have no idea how much it means to me that someone actually took time out of their life to read my work. And to even favorite it is a great honor and joy for me. So I'm very grateful to every single of my readers, thank you." –bows-


	4. The Revealed Truth

DISCLAIMER: The day I own Naruto is the day when I somehow very strangely switch bodies with Mashashi Kishimoto-sensei then I will make millions. –cackle cackle- But then again, that would be kind of wrong. Scratch that, it would be wrong on so many levels.

Note: _This type of font represents our beloved Naruto-kun's thoughts. 0.0 I sounded like the president of Uzumaki Naruto fan club. _Also, there will be SPOILERS from now on. So beware, you have been warned. Chapters may contain spoilers all the way to the latest manga chapters.

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_Then I turned around, facing a random door and then very gently placed my hand on the worn out brass doorknob. I tighten my grasp upon it and turned it. For a couple moments I squinted in the darkness with nothing but the dimming light of the flashlight illuminating the room. A silent gasp escaped from me, I didn't need Kyuubi to tell me what this room was._

"_**Nursery,"**_

The sweet summer breeze swept the particles of dust into the cloud-less sky as I repeatedly slammed the feather duster into the heavily dust-coated bookcases.

"Damn. Fucking. Stupid. Dust," every word was followed by a sneeze and then a fit of coughing, "Stupid. Bacchan. Took care of it? Yeah right,"

"Naruto are you finished cleaning yet?" Father's voice rang out from below, "I need help with the kitchen afterwards"

"No, not yet" I groaned mentally, I snatched a piece of tissue and rubbed it over my sore nose. _I hate allergies and I look like blond Rudolph_. Something hard and heavy slammed into my skull as it landed with a rather heavy _thud._

"Ow! What the-… A book?" A dark navy leather-bounded book lay on the ground as I bent down and picked it. I slid the smooth leather-bounded book around in my hands, feeling every dent and scars from its battles with time. My fingers ran over a dulled metal plate with a faded imprinted word on it. _Mem….ori…..es _

_Memories….a photo album?_Very carefully and gently, I peeled open the dark navy cover to the first slightly yellow page; a small photograph of a man and a woman was pasted on the first page. The man had his arm around the woman, his unruly golden locks wavering with the wind, _it's kind of like my hair except its lighter, or is that because the photograph's fading?_And the woman had a deep vibrate scarlet colored hair that flowed to her thighs. _Her eyes, they're almost like Sakura-chan's…._ A deep emerald-green color that seem more beautiful and precious than the finest jade the world could offer.

Underneath the photograph, there were some small dark scribbles.

"Nami….kaze……Mina…to…Namikaze Minato…." A moment of silence fell upon me as my brain received the shocking news, "WOAH THE NAMIKAZE MINATO?" _The same Namikaze Minato that sealed the Kyuubi inside of me…._I stared once more at the photograph, studying every detail. The man's eyes were a faded baby blue color, but there was certain brightness about them. Maybe it was the way they shone and glisten with pride, making one think the eyes were a much deeper shade than the baby blues they came in. _Or maybe they were an azure blue colored__, _I mused.

"Naruto-kun, are you done yet?" Father's sudden call almost made me drop the album as I hastily shoved it into my pockets.

"Almost," I yelled back, grabbing the duster and returned to my job of beating the bookcases. _The photo with Namikaze Minato, what does it mean? Why would my father have it? And the nursery…._

_Star wallpaper ran along the walls, covering every inch of it except the teddy bear decorated light switch. Glow-in-the-dark stars and moons hung from the ceiling as well from the walls. A wooden crib lay under creamy-gold curtains that were draped across the window. A single handmade quilt was spread across the crib, almost as if they were ready to receive the baby. Stuff animals decorated a small corner of the room with their happy smiles, waiting for a pair of small hands to take them on a journey._

I shook my head, trying to rid my head of these thoughts. _Those stuff animals… I wonder how long have they been waiting in that forgotten lonely nursery?_"Dammit!" I cussed as I found myself heading back to the nursery. _Forgotten…. Waiting for someone… Waiting for that pair of hands to take them and say "Everything is going to be okay". _

I slammed the door open and threw a fit of cough as the dust danced across the room. Putting my arm over my mouth and nose, I stomped over to the window and gently pulled open the curtain before wrestling with the window. It finally opened but not without groans and moans of protest as fresh air and warm sunlight flooded in.

"Ahhhh…. Fresh air that doesn't smell like dust and musty books," I sighed with pleasure. The mischievous wind kissed my skin and ruffled my hair at the lightest touch, the sunlight wraps and cradled me in a light, warm blanket. It was pure bliss. Then I turned around, studying the nursery once more, dust clung to every object available in the room. Well, better get started.

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Time: Late Afternoon  
Location: Kitchen  
Name: XXXXXXXX XXXXXX (Naruto's Father)

"It's been such a long time," I scrubbed the kitchen countertop furiously.

"_Ah, Kushina! You should be more careful," I scolded angrily, "What if you fell?" She smiled, her flaming boyish scarlet hair following her movements as she twirled around. "Kushina!"_

"_I'm okay Minato, but I guess becoming a papa is making you more mature isn't it?" She teased, "I can't believe there's actually a day when the Namikaze Minato-sama would actually become so mature" _

"_I think I'm starting to get gray hair because of you," I sighed. Kushina tilted her head backwards and laughed; she stopped and looked at me._

"_What?" I asked, "Is there something on my face?"_

"_You smiled," She replied, "You finally stopped scowling and smiled" _

"_Kushina…" I trailed off, she had already ran off into the kitchen._

"_Minato, hurry up and bring the grocery in. I want to hang up the stars in Naruto-chan's room!"_

"_Kushina, how many times have I told you? Don't run around, it's dangerous," I lectured, "Besides, I'm the one who's going to hang the stars up, it's too dangerous for you"_

"_Eh? But I want to do it," She poked her head out of the kitchen, pouting, "Plus a little exercise is good for me"_

"_How is that exercise? The doctor said to take it easy, otherwise Naruto isn't going to be as healthy," I replied as I set the bags on top of the kitchen counter._

"_Oh, Minato, are you by any chance one of those doting fathers?"_

"_What's up with that? Where did you get that idea from?" _

"I wonder how many years have gone by since Kushina and I were last here," I muttered softly, "It seems just like yesterday…"

**CRASH! **I jumped at the sudden noise.

"Naruto!"

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It was one thing leading a troop in a war and a completely different thing to find your own son buried in a pile of random objects.

"What are you doing?" A hand shot out of the said pile and Naruto crawled out wearily.

"I thought I should clean this room up a bit and maybe put some plants in here," He laughed sheepishly, "I hope I didn't break anything."

"Honestly, you're exactly like your mother," I sighed, rubbing my temple, "Always so reck-" Something slammed into my skull, hard. The impact shoved me backwards and I landed rather painfully. I sat up, something wasn't quite right.

Oh.

Shit.

The cloak had fallen off.

"You're…the Yondaime Hokage," Naruto stared in shock, his voice full of disbelief, and his azure eyes filled with pure hatred…

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Loneliness and sorrow. Acceptance and Rejection. All the feelings that were created by one decision made by the Yondaime Hokage years ago, but now it's Naruto's turn to make the decision. Next time, Naruto's decision.

Aki: I apologize for not updating earlier, I had a writer's block ; o;. But I finally finished the chapter. –confetti- The chapter is short, the next one will probably be too (based off the manga cough cough), but look forward to it :D.


	5. Child

Author's Note: Snaps, I've been gone for so long I forgot how to do an introduction. That was my pathetic attempt at an apology. Please forgive me for neglecting on updating. Who every said "Writing is easy. All you have to do is stare at a blank piece of paper until you start to sweat blood," must have bought a lot of band-aids.

Thanks to Shinichi06 for criticism, I will try my best to fix those mistakes. But sometimes I really don't know what I'm doing. Enough of my babbling, now for the part all of you love.

**DISCLAIMER: I do not at all own Naruto. Simple as that people.**

**A/N: **I guess this would be considered an AU since I wrote this before the Pein Arc started so Naruto wouldn't have a chance to talk to Minato yet. For some reason this is all written in Minato's point of view.

* * *

**Last time: **

_ Something slammed into my skull, hard. The impact shoved me backwards and I landed rather painfully. I sat up, something wasn't quite right._

_Oh._

_Shit._

_The cloak had fallen off._

"_You're…the Yondaime Hokage," Naruto stared in shock, his voice full of disbelief, and his azure eyes filled with pure hatred…_

_

* * *

_

As I sat upon the wooden floor panicking, Naruto's facial expression shifted from shock to anger to happiness then back to anger again.

"…Naruto?" I asked gently, unsure of what to say next.

"So you're my…" The anger faded into a relieved happiness like when a lost child finds their parents again. Teardrops began gathering in the corners of his eyes.

"As I sat upon the wooden floor panicking, Naruto's facial expression shifted from shock to anger to happiness then back to anger again.

"…Naruto?" I asked gently, unsure of what to say next.

"So you're my…" The anger faded into a relieved happiness like when a lost child finds their parents again. Teardrops began gathering in the corners of his eyes.

"You're my son," I said to him, "I guess the Third never told you. Hiruzen-sama wanted as little information about the Kyuubi as possible out in the public. If anyone knew you were my son, you'd have been in constant danger…Forgive me Naruto."

"Why?" He asked simply, "Why? Of all the times? Why the hell did you come back after sixteen years? Do you have any idea what kind of hell you put me through?"

"I won't make any excuses Naruto, I abandoned you. That is the truth,"

"Then why did you come back? I wanted to believe in you, that you never abandoned me. You were dead, that's why you couldn't stay with me. Why? Why did you seal Kyuubi inside of me? There were other infants you could've used right?"

"Because you are my son,"

Naruto

"Because you are my son,"

Why did you have to say that?

Why?

When you say things like that I can't stay angry, even though I wanted to. I wanted to let the anger boil over and let the rage show. I wanted to show the pain I've been through, how painful and how difficult it was for me to grow up without someone to rely on. Without a hand that I can hold onto as I walked home from school, without strong arms to lift me into the azure sky, or to shower me with praises when I did well.

Without a soothing and warm voice to read me a story at bedtime and without the experience of throwing a tantrum because I was too old for holding hands when I cross the street. They were simple things that everyone else had taken it for granted, but I had observed them more closely than anyone else. The expression the child made when he wanted ice-cream or a new toy and the parent refused to buy it for him. The excited face a child made when she asked, "What's for dinner tonight?"

But the moment you said those words, everything, the anger and the pain melted away. I had wondered why, but deep in my heart, I already knew the answer; I wanted to believe in your words more than anything else, even if they were lies, I wanted to believe in them.

"…Dad," He had brought the sleeve of the jacket next to his eyes, wiping away the teardrops, then with a sudden movement, he grabbed onto my shoulders tightly, "Why did you seal the fucking Kyuubi into your own son? Do you know how tough it's been living with that?"

"I'm happy. I'm pissed as hell. I don't know what to feel!" He cried.

My heart broke. What happened to that sweet little infant that I had held in my arms? But, this was to be expected wasn't it? I did make the right choice…didn't I?

"Naruto, how old are you now?"

"Sixteen," He replied.

"Sixteen wow," I couldn't believe I had missed so much of his life, they were moments that I could never rewind back to. From the moment he had taken his first step to the moment where he had become a ninja, I wasn't able to witness any of it. But the thing that hurt the most was, I couldn't be there for him.

I couldn't play ninja with him, take him out to dinner, attend his parent conferences; but most of all, I couldn't be there for his graduation day. That pain of seeing everyone else's parents surrounding them and congratulating them must have been excruciating.

"I've…cause you a lot of pain, Naruto. I'm sorry. I've caused you nothing but grief… Some father I am… All I can do is apologize."

_I am sorry._

"Whatever," He said with a sudden look of toughness. "I'm the Yondaime's son, I can deal with it." I smiled, should I tell him the rest? The fact that I sealed half of the Kyuubi's chakra inside him?

One look into those baby-blue eyes shattered whatever willpower I had gathered. He was still a child, a young child who didn't need all of this…yet. I gazed at him sadly, so young and soon he will have another heavy burden to carry.

After a couple moments of uncomfortable silence, Naruto declared, "I'm hungry, let's get Ichiraku's for dinner!"

"Sure," Breathing a sigh of relief, I followed the younger copy of me out the door.

"You're paying," Naruto called out.

"Sure-wait what?"

"Slow down Naruto, you're going to choke," I said, "Honestly you two are so alike" Sitting with a bowl of ramen before me; I had disguised myself with the appearance of an ordinary man. A man with brown hair and brown eyes with traveler's clothes, ordinary enough to blend into the noisy crowds of Konoha.

* * *

"So Naruto, is he a friend of yours?" The owner of the store asked.

"Yeah he's my da-"

"Uncle. I'm his uncle," I interrupted smoothly.

"Oh I see. Traveling?" He asked, glancing over my clothes.

"Yes, I do a little traveling every once in a while," I replied, feeling a small nudge on my side I turned around.

"I was going to say my dad's brother," Naruto pouted underneath all those noodles, then in a swift movement he swept up the bowl and drank. Amazing.

"Ah, that was good," he sighed contently, and then slowly he stole a couple envious glances at my bowl.

"Do you want it?" his face lit up immediately like a young boy on Christmas Day. _He's sixteen now,_ I reminded myself sadly, _but you can't help but think he's still a child. _Or perhaps I was the only one who thought of him as a child, I suppose this is parental instinct. No matter how old your child grows, they are still babies to you.

When he finished, we paid (I actually) the bill and we left, wandering and admiring the night street of Konoha.

"What—What was Mom like?"

I remained silent for a while, pondering for a good word to describe her, "Rebellious"

"Eh—What?"

"Flamboyant, always wanted to do things her way,"

"I thought in situations like this the father always say, 'Beautiful and kind!' or something like that,"

I laughed, "Your mother was special, and her personality is exactly like yours. She was a troublemaker; it was troubling for me since Hokage-sama always sent me to deal with her."

"What did she look like?

"…Beautiful and kind!" I grinned at him, and then added quickly when Naruto shot me a death glare, "She _really_ was beautiful and kind. Well, her kindness was a bit….rough" I winced, remembering the pain.

"But she was the world's greatest woman. Her scarlet hair matched her personality completely, wild and untamable like fire. Beautiful and captive like the flames. Kushina was really…the world's greatest woman,"

"…Was mom's cooking good?"

I paled, "It was…interesting,"

"Worse than Shima-san's cooking?"

"Hey! Shima-san's cooking is considered delicious!"

"Only if you're a toad," He replied deadpanned, "When I find that delicious, I won't be a human being anymore,"

"You got a point…Wait, you're been to Myōbokuzan before?"

"Yea, and I learned the Sage mode! Hehehe, I'm amazing aren't I?" And he grinned like a proud idiot, but he had every right to be.

"You are. As expected of my son," I smiled proudly. Naruto's expression flickered from happiness to embarrassment to anger. It was even faster than Kushina's mood swings, which were often very dangerous and painful to me.

"Do-Don't think I'll forgive you just because of this! I'm still very angry at you!" He declared childishly and stalked off into the night. I stared at his disappearing figure in surprise, but then a small smile crept onto my face.

He's still a child after all.

* * *

Wow, it's been almost a year before I actually got my butt down and started to finish this chapter. I know I had said this chapter was going to be called Naruto's decision, but I decided to change it. This chapter is dedicated to the people who grew up with a single parent or both parents. Or even to the ones who grew up without any.

Treasure them if you have them, don't take them for grant.

Treasure the ones who love you in life if you don't have parents, don't take those people who love you for grant.


End file.
